It is with great pleasure that we offer three case studies to complement the report Calling All Leaders: An Action Guide to Workforce Development Transformation. The action guide outlined the grand dimensions of the challenge by the numbers, and contrasted the need for workforce development services with the limited resources available. These case studies show that Gateway City leaders are undaunted. They rise each day and doggedly search for creative solutions to help workers hone new skills and grow regional economies.

We are grateful to the change-agents who allowed us to capture their efforts. They warmly welcomed us into their world, candidly explained the considerable obstacles they face, and openly offered advice to others on how they might get a start on responding to common challenges. This project benefited tremendously from Jodi Wilinsky Hill, a consultant to MassINC, who travelled the state with us collecting these narratives. Her years of experience delivering workforce development services through small nonprofit organizations gave us invaluable perspective distilling lessons-learned.

In addition to reading these case studies, we strongly encourage you to visit our website to view highlights from our interviews. Llyr Johansen and Aaron Van Leesten expertly captured the conversations and produced compelling videos that bring these stories to life. MassINC’s video library is growing faster than our research library. At a time when understanding is limited about how government seeks to respond to the complex challenges we face is limited, this video archive is a trove of documentary evidence that can be mined and shared in many different formats to reveal examples of strong and well-intentioned public leadership.

Watch these videos and you will also see the green shoots of renewal shooting up in Gateway Cities across our Commonwealth. By working collaboratively for “systems change,” Gateway City leaders are establishing roots. Our hope is that, in due time, these roots will better support Massachusetts’s most vulnerable residents as they mount their pursuits of the American Dream

Why support massinc?

We enjoy what we do.

Whether it’s planning events, conducting research, or analyzing the news, our team works on projects that we’re passionate about.

Reason #6

We develop leaders.

Former MassINC employees have gone on to work at reputable organizations like Harvard University, Boston University, City Year, EnerNOC, and Governor Baker’s office.

Reason #5

We stick with it.

Our work on transformative development, which uses public and private funding for projects to revitalize an entire downtown or urban neighbor­hood, began as Policy Center research report in 2013. A year later, the state legislature passed a bill funding transformative development projects across Massachusetts.

Reason #4

We are nonpartisan.

Our Board of Directors includes prominent Massachusetts Democrats and Republicans. We are interested people’s ideas, not which side of the aisle they sit on.

Reason #3

We have a complete toolbox.

We aren’t just a think tank. We bring nonpartisan research, civic engagement, journalism, and independent polling together under one roof.

Reason #2

We have state-wide reach.

We know that Beacon Hill isn’t the only place to make progress. We’re on the ground in cities across the state working with local leaders.

Reason #1

We have unique networks.

We use our connections to bring together a cross-section of diverse leaders to solve problems. Our networks include mayors, economic development directors, superintendents, business people, newspaper editors, arts leaders, and regional transit officials.